Ex-Turkish PM Davutoglu criticizes Erdogan’s policies, questions ‘missing’ $16 bln
Former Turkish Prime Minister Ahmet Davutoglu continued his criticism of current President Recep Tayyip Erdogan and called on him to disclose the whereabouts of 110 billion Turkish liras (more than $16 billion) that have allegedly gone missing, Davutoglu said during his latest television appearance.
He has previously accused the President of corruption and failing to manage the economy. The former prime minister has also blamed Erdogan for for the deterioration of freedom as well as the decline of democracy in the country.
During his appearance on Karar TV, Davutoglu also said this is the first time the country has seen such a large deficit since 2002, adding that coronavirus is not to blame for the current economic crisis.
Erdogan in May accused Davutoglu and other former allies of defrauding state-owned bank, Halkbank, by allocating loans toward the establishment of Istanbul’s Sehir University, which was founded by Davutoglu.
Davutoglu hit back, calling on parliament to launch investigations into the wealth of Erdogan, his family members as well as current and past high-ranking officials, including himself.
Davutoglu resigned from the AK Party in September 2019, days after the ruling party began proceedings to expel him from the party for breach of discipline after he issued a manifesto critical of Erdogan’s policies. He then established a new political party in a move that represents a challenge to Erdogan’s ruling party.
The politician had served as foreign minister between 2009 and 2014 and later as prime minister until 2016, when he was sacked by Erdogan and replaced by Binali Yildirim, reportedly over his reluctance to support Erdogan’s efforts to increase the powers of the president. Turkey switched to a system that vastly expanded the president’s powers following a referendum in 2017.
